15 Best Calvin and Hobbes Strips About School (and Homework)

Calvin and Hobbes is a comic strip series that is rooted in the imagination and creativity of a child, which means the comic’s opinion on school and homework (through the eyes of Calvin) is not a flattering one. There’s nothing that stifles a kid’s creativity more than forced learning, and while school is an essential part of growing up, it’s not usually a child’s favorite – especially one like Calvin.

While Calvin obviously still has to go to school, he usually finds ways to cope with this constant annoyance in his life. Sometimes Calvin imagines scenarios where his school is destroyed in some fantastical way, other times he tries to trick his parents to get out of going to school, and other times Calvin just skips school entirely. But no matter what, Calvin’s solutions to dealing with school are always rooted in his creative imagination – especially when there’s no other alternative but to simply endure it. Here are 15 of the funniest Calvin and Hobbes strips about school (and homework).

15 Calvin Imagines His Elementary School’s Destruction, & Wishes It was Real

Calvin and Hobbes, 9-27

Calvin is flying a fighter jet, checking his engines, counting his missiles, and preparing for an all-out assault on his designated target: his own elementary school. Calvin flies in and launches missile after missile at the building, destroying it completely and freeing himself and his classmates from ever stepping foot inside there again. And then, Calvin wakes up from his daydream, steps off the school bus, and goes to school, disappointed that his fantasy wasn’t a reality – something many kids can assuredly empathize with.

14 Calvin Uses Stupendous Man’s Questionable Superhero Status to Get Out of Homework

Calvin and Hobbes, 10-12

Stupendous Man is Calvin’s superhero alter ego, though his superhero status is very much in question, as Stupendous Man only seems to do things that benefit Calvin without considering anyone else – and this comic is no exception. Using his Superman-like powers, Stupendous Man uses a giant telescope in space to destroy Calvin’s school with the heat of the sun, and he does this just to get Calvin out of doing homework. Impressive, to be sure, but certainly not very heroic.

13 Calvin Retreats into His Imaginary World When He’s Caught Skipping School

Calvin and Hobbes, 5-25

Skipping school is probably the worst thing a kid Calvin’s age could do, and the only thing worse than doing it is getting caught – which is exactly what happened to Calvin. He tries to weave a lie about a gas leak causing early dismissal, but Calvin’s mom easily fact-checks that with a simple call to the school. In short, Calvin knew he was busted, and he also knew the punishment would be severe. That’s why he retreated to his imaginary world where Calvin’s a cosmic hero named Spaceman Spiff, as facing evil aliens sounded better than the wrath of his mother.

12 Calvin’s Attempt to Have Hobbes Go To School in His Place Fails (for 1 Hilarious Reason)

Calvin and Hobbes, 1-23

One morning before school, Calvin’s mom notices that he’s running a little bit behind, so she goes up to his room to check on him. When she gets there, she doesn’t find Calvin, but Hobbes (in his stuffed animal form) wearing Calvin’s clothes. Obviously, she doesn’t buy it for a second, which is what Hobbes (in his anthropomorphic tiger form) tells Calvin. And Calvin knows exactly why the trickery didn’t work, “You didn’t put on any pants!“. Yes, Calvin, your mom didn’t send a stuffed animal to school in your place because he wasn’t wearing pants – spot on.

11 Hobbes’ Insatiable Appetite Makes Calvin’s Day at School Even Worse

Calvin and Hobbes, 10-18

It’s no secret that Hobbes has an insatiable appetite (indeed, that’s how the two met in the first place), but this comic shows him taking things one step too far. As Hobbes waits with Calvin at the bus stop, listening to Calvin drone on and on about how terrible school is, Hobbes is just chowing down on Calvin’s lunch – something Calvin doesn’t even notice until he’s on the bus. Not having a lunch will make Calvin’s already crappy day even worse, and it’s all thanks to Hobbes‘ insatiable appetite.

10 Calvin Comics Up with a Hilarious Way to Not Pay Attention in Class

Calvin and Hobbes, 12-11

One of Calvin’s favorite pastimes (especially during class) is daydreaming. Calvin goes on cosmic adventures, flies through time and space, and proves his mettle as a superhero during these daydreams. The only problem is, when they happen in class, his teacher can see that he’s not paying attention. So, Calvin came up with a ‘brilliant’ solution: ping pong ball eyes! He cuts a ping pong ball in half, draws the pupil and iris, and sticks them over his real eyes to make it look like he’s paying attention in class, allowing him to daydream all day long.

9 Calvin Makes a Valid Point About School Days in the Winter

Calvin and Hobbes, 1-4

As Calvin is waiting at the bus stop with Hobbes in the dead of winter, snow falling all around them, Calvin complains that it’s way too cold to leave the house, let alone spend all day at school. Instead, Calvin thinks a day like this calls for nothing but a warm bed, hot chocolate, and comics – which is something practically everyone can get on board with. And what’s funniest about this is that that’s pretty much exactly what Hobbes is going to do with his day once Calvin is gone, and he tells him that to his face.

8 Calvin Finds the Up-Side to a Transmogrifier Incident: Owls Don’t Go to School

Calvin and Hobbes, 2-19

Calvin’s Transmogrifier is an imaginary device with the power to turn anyone into anything. In this case, it turns Calvin into an owl, and at first, Calvin starts freaking out about that. He tells Hobbes that he can’t be an owl because he has school the next morning, and he’s worried about what his classmates will think. But then, Calvin realizes that, if he’s an owl, he won’t have to go to school the next morning because owls don’t go to school – and that turns his mood around greatly.

7 Calvin Learns the Upsetting Limitations of His Transmogrifier

Calvin and Hobbes, 2-20

While Calvin was thrilled that he wouldn’t have to go to school so long as he was an owl, the next morning, he was shocked to wake up as a human again. This experience taught him that the Transmogrifier does have its limits: it wears off overnight. While that’s good to note, it doesn’t exactly help Calvin in this situation, as he now has to go to school on a day he thought he would be able to stay home because he was an owl.

6 School Day Morning from Calvin’s Mom’s Perspective is Absolutely Priceless

Calvin and Hobbes, 9-6

Normally, Calvin and Hobbes comics tell little stories from Calvin’s perspective, but in this case, that perspective shifts to his mom – and it’s absolutely priceless. Being the mom of a boy like Calvin cannot be easy, especially when it comes to the daily struggle of sending him off to school. And this comic shows that perfectly, as Calvin’s mom catches him trying to ditch school, and then yells at him while she’s still in her robe, which is a hilarious depiction of what Calvin’s mom goes through every day.

5 Calvin Turns Going to School into a Perilous Spaceman Spiff Adventure

Calvin and Hobbes, 12-5

Spaceman Spiff is a cosmic adventurer, and one of Calvin’s coolest alter egos, who also serves as a perfect escape for Calvin whenever he doesn’t want to deal with something in the real world. In this case, that ‘something’ is going to school, as his mom is literally holding Calvin by the leg upside down, trying to get him out of the house. However, in Calvin’s mind, he’s Spaceman Spiff, floating through space trying to repair his spaceship – which is a level of disassociation Calvin’s mom is probably a little jealous of right about now.

4 Calvin Finally Finds the Perfect Solution to His ‘School Problem’: Duplicates

Calvin and Hobbes, 1-22

While the Transmogrifier failed to get Calvin out of school, another one of his inventions might have done the trick: the Duplicator. The Duplicator creates duplicates of anyone who steps foot inside the ‘machine’ (aka cardboard box). In this comic, it’s revealed that Calvin made 5 duplicates of himself, and he decided that each of them would be responsible for one day of school a week. And just like that, Calvin’s ‘school problem’ has seemingly been handled.

3 Calvin is Hilariously Honest About What He’d Really Do with His School-Less Days

Calvin and Hobbes, 11-5

Every comic that deals with Calvin going to school usually depicts him either complaining about it or trying to get out of it completely, and this one is no different. However, after Calvin says that it’s a shame he’s being forced to go to school on a beautiful day like today, Hobbes asks what he would do with his morning instead, to which Calvin honestly replies, “Sleep right through it“. It seems Calvin answered his own question as to why he is forced to go to school, because if it was up to him, he’d just sleep his days away.

2 Calvin Finds the Perfect (Albeit Brutal) Solution to Dealing with a School Bully

Calvin and Hobbes, 11-5

One of the worst parts about school for a lot of kids is the class bully, and Calvin has his very own in Calvin and Hobbes. However, in this comic, Calvin comes up with the perfect solution to dealing with his bully: feed him to Hobbes. Calvin wants Hobbes to rip his bully to shreds, which – as a tiger – Hobbes should be more than capable of. While it’s a solid (albeit brutal) plan, Hobbes isn’t exactly on board with the idea, no matter how effective ‘death by tiger’ would be in getting rid of Calvin’s bully.

1 Calvin is Faced with the Grim Reality of What Life is Like AFTER School

Calvin and Hobbes, 3-12

While Calvin and Hobbes shows school in a negative light (from Calvin’s perspective), this one allows Calvin a grim glimpse at the alternative: life as an adult. To a kid, school represents the antithesis of the freedom they think they’d have without it. However, after a conversation with his dad, Calvin realizes that he has it easy going to school every day. While this doesn’t make him very optimistic about the future, it at least made school a bit more tolerable. And that’s why this is one of the 10 best Calvin and Hobbes comic strips about school.

Calvin and Hobbes

Calvin and Hobbes was a satirical comic strip series that ran from 1985-1995, written, drawn, and colored by Bill Watterson. The series follows six-year-old Hobbes and his stuffed Tiger, Calvin, that examines their lives through a whimsical lens that tackles everyday comedic issues and real-world issues that people deal with.